a magnitude 7.1 earthquake hit the country's second-biggest city, christchurch, in the early morning hours. miraculously, no one was killed. nick schifrin has the latest from london. good morning, nick. >> reporter: it was the most destructive earthquake to hit that area in 80 years. and today, the prime minister is saying that the damages that that quake caused are probably about $1.5 billion. new zealand is in a state of emergency. a violent, powerful earthquake damaged hundreds of buildings, crumpled at least six bridges. twisted railroads and burst water mains, submerging entire villages. >> oh, my gosh. well, that shake lasted probably over a minute. we've got no power. we've got no water. >> i heard people screaming. and maybe a child crying. >> this one, it felt really huge. you know, if it had gone on any longer, or been any stronger, the walls could have caved in of our house. >> this is it. the earthquake. >> reporter: the earthquake seen in this home video, hit in the middle of the night. this man's house survived. but the infrastructure damaged is widespread. many buildin